In January, I spent the month participating in something called Storystorm, which is put on by the lovely Tara Lazar. The idea is to well, get an idea a day written down. I enjoyed it so much that I haven't stopped. Fortunately, there are a lot of online spots to grab prompts from or you can do what I did today, which was open the Descriptosaurus by Alison Wilcox and grab two descriptions for ghost stories. I mixed them together and came up with this prompt.
A sense of foreboding crept through her, and sweat trickled down her forehead. Sometimes when she neared a ghost, it came in the form of a chill. Other times an odd feeling that she couldn't quite place played hide and seek with her. Today, the ghosts seemed to be playing peek-a-boo with Monica and she really didn't like it.
She glanced up the staircase that led to the second floor. Dust covered the wood and cobwebs clung to the spindles. Monica stepped onto the bottom step and grasped the handrail. The stair creaked under her weight.
"Ready or not, I'm coming up," she said to the empty house.
She slowly climbed the stairs, stopping every few steps to listen. Other than the wind whistling outside, she didn't hear a thing. Two more steps and gooseflesh rose on her arms. "Hello," she said. "Come to say hi?"
Of course the ghost didn't answer, but she did feel it brush by.
"I'm not leaving until we have a talk. The owners are quite cross with you. They want me to kick you out," Monica said. "If you don't want me to do that, then you're going to have to communicate."
A bedroom door on the second floor flew open, the wood banging against the wall. There was a sharp, burst of cold air like Monica had stepped into a walk-in freezer, then she felt two hands clasp her shoulders and push.
As you can see from this short exercise, I could take this story in many different directions. Is Monica a ghost hunter? A psychic medium? An adventurer? Here's another thought, what if Monica is a ghost, too? So many directions, so many fun ways to play. Until next week. Ciao!